Shoo-fly attachment for doors.



No. 655,242., Patented Aug. 7, I900.

W. T. JOHNSON. SHOO'FLY ATTACHMENT FUR DOORS.

(Application filed Jan. 29, 1900.)

(No Iludal.)

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UNITED STATES PATENT O FICE.

WILLIAMTI-IO. JOHNSON, OF STANDISI-I, MISSOURI.

SHOO-FLY ATTACHMENT FOR DOORS.

S's-marathon forming art of Letters I Patent No. 655,242, dated August 7, 1900.

Application filed January 29 1900' Serial No. 3,252. (No model.)

fly ofi to such a distance that a person opening the door will have ample time to pass through the dogr-opening and the door to swing back'and close before the flies can return and pass into the house.

A further object is to provide a device of the character mentioned which is of simple, cheap, and durable construction, which can be applied quickly and easily to any type of door, and which does not interfere in the slightest degree with the opening and closing of the door or the passage of a person through the door-opening.

With these objects in view and others as hereinafter appear the invention consists in certain novel and peculiar features of construction and combinations of parts, as will be hereinafter described and claimed, and in order that the invention may'befullyunderstood I will proceed to describe it with ref erence to the accompanying drawings, in which I f Figure 1 representsa front viewof a screendoor provided with a shod-fly attachment embodying my invention; Fig. '2 is a top plan View of the same with the door partly open in full lines in one position and more widely opened and completely closed in dotted lines. Fig. 3 is a similar view showing the door open to a position at rightangles with the plane of the door-frame. Fig. 4 is an enlarged perspective viewshowing the brushcarrying frameprovided with a spring adapted to give an impetus to the collapse of the attachment,and thereby tend to facilitate the closing of the door. Fig. 5 is a view of the outer s'ideof the upper portion of the door provided with a modified form of my device.

Referring to the drawings, where like reference P numerals designate corresponding parts, 1 designates the door-frame. 2 desig nates the door, preferably a screen-door, and

provided with the customary spring-hinges to effect its automatic closure.

The shoo-fly attachment is constructed as follows:

3 designates a bearing-clip secured to the door-frame and preferably located about as shown in Fig. 1. 4E designates a similar clip also secured to the frame, preferably below the first-named clip.

5 designates a swinging frame, consisting of stiff wire bent to form the arm 6, termimating in a short vertical pivot 7, mounted in clip 3, and the brace-arm 8, terminating at the corresponding end in the similar pivot 9, mounted in the clip 4, said arm and brace-arm being connected at their opposite ends by the upright portion 10, an eye or loop 11 being formed at the junction of said upright portion and arm and coincidently with the hinge-line of the door. The swinging frame extends as arranged in Fig. 1 across and flatly 7 5 against the upper face of the door, the lower or brace arm 8- by preference occupying a vertical plane slightly rearward of the arm 6 (see Fig. 2) to receive the direct thrust of the opening door, thereby relieving the brush 12,

pendent from the arm 6, from injuriousjwear or abrasion by contact with the door, this brush being constructed 'of fairly-stiff paper or any other substance which when violently agitated or jerked suddenly and swiftly through the air willrattle and agitatej the surrounding air to more effectually startle and dislodge the flies clingingin great num ber to the outside of the door. The bracearm 8 not only stiffens and strengthens the 0 as it otherwise would to some extent, and 5 therefore not make as much noiseas desirable, and to insure that the brush shall not be. injured by the door it may bedesirable to bow the arm 6 outward slightly, as at 13,

at the point opposite the free vedge of the loo door. (See Figs. 2 and 3.) "A clip 14 is secured to the door and receives the depending pivot 16 of swinging link 15, said link being formed with a loop 17 at its opposite end pivoted to eye or loop 11..

The impact of the opening door against brace-arm 8 swings or jerks the brush-carrying frame violently outward before the door has assumed the'position shown in full lines, Fig. 2, and such movement of the frame is continued until it and the door attain the positions indicated, respectively, by the letters a and Z). From this position the continuous opening movement of the door through the medium. of link 15 swings the. brush-cabrying frame inward, (see Fig. 3,).suchmovement continuing until the door is completely opened and the brush is across the upper end i of the door-opening, as will be readily under stood. As the door is closed it at first through the medium of said link swings the brushcarrying frame outward until the latter attains position aand then reverses such movement and swings it inward until as the door. attains its closed position the brush is again in position across the outer face and near the.

upper end of the door, where it isagain ready to startlethe flies upon the reopening of the door.

Should the spring-hinges of the doorbecome so ineffective as to be unreliable in returning the door to its closedposition, it may be desirable to mount a spring 18 on the up-. right. portion 10 of the frame and secure its upper and lower ends to the link 15 and bracearm 8, as shown, respectively, at 19 "and 20, (see-Fig. 4,)Which arrangement tends to effeet the collapse of theframeviz., the movement of the frameand link to approximatelyparallel relationand thereby facilitate the 7 closing of the door by assisting the spring;

hinges thereof to perform their proper func--- tion, as will be readilyunderstood.

Although Figs. 1, 2, and 3 disclose the preferred embodiment of the invention, it may be desirable in some instances to use the simpler construction illustrated in Fig. 5, where it'will be noticed thebrace-arm 8 is dispensed with and the arm 6' provided with a, substi tute in the form of an arm 6*, projecting into the path of movement of the door, that the latter shall when opened swing the brush carrying frame or arm 6 violently outward, as described. Either style could be employed in connection with a double door, one attach= ment for each door, but that shown in Fig. 5 would be preferable. To usethe construction shown in Figs. 1, 2, and 3-, it would of course have to be arranged above the dooropening.

From the above description it will be apparent that I have produced a shoo fiy attachment for doors possessing the features of. advantage enumerated as desirable in the statement of invention, and it isto be understood that Ireserve the right to make such, changes-in the form, proportion,arrangement, ordetail construction as properly fall within the spiritand scope of the appended claims.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new, and desire tosecure by Letters Patent, is

1. The combination with a door, of a frame pivoted 'to the door-frame adjacent to the free edge of the door, and embodying an arm in th-e'path of-the opening door so as to receive the thrust thereof, a brush carried by said pivoted frame, and a link pivotally connecting the doorwith said pivoted frame, substantially as described.

2. The combination with adoor, of a frame 'comprising a substantially --heri-zontal arm abo-vetheplane of the door and pivoted at its inner end to the door-frame, and a bracevarm, at the outer side and in the path of the opening door soas toreceive the thrusttherej of, pivoted at itsinner end-to the door-frame,v

and united at itsouter end to the outer end ofsaid-first-named; arm, a brush carried by said pivoted frame, and a link .pivotally connecting said pivoted frame with the door,

substantially. as described; H

3. The combination-With a door, ofa frame L brush suspended from the first-named .arm outward of said brace arm, substantially as described. r

4 Thecombinatioiiwitha door, ofa frame l pivoted to the door-frame, and provided with an arm in the path of the door so as to receive the thrust of the. latter as it opens, a brush said pivoted frame with thedoor, and a'spring f tending to cause said pivoted frame and link i to assume an approximately-parallel relation f, substantially:asdes cribed. V

I '5. The combination witha do0r,,ofa frame, f consisting of a rod bent to form approximately-parallel arms pivoted at theirinner ends to the door-frame, andconnected at their loop, one of said arms lying in the path of the opening door so as to receive the thrust there-- f of, a link-pivotallyjconnectedto the-doorand tosaid veye or loop, and a brush depending i from said pivoted frame, substantially as defscribed. I Y

I 6. The combination with a door, of a frame, consisting of a rod bent to form approxij mately-parallelarms pivoted at their inner ends to the door-frame, and connectedat their ,outer ends. by an upright portion and eye or loop, one of said arms lyingin the path of'the j opening door so as to receive the thrust therej. of, a link pivotallyconnectedto the doorand comprising an armadaptedj to swing in a plane theouter end. of said pivoted frame, and a carriedthereby, a link pivotally connecting I outer ends by an upright portion and eye or to said eye or loop, a spring mounted on the upright portion, and secured at its ends to said link and the lower arm of said pivoted frame, and a brush pendently attached to the upper arm of said pivoted frame, substantially as described.

7. The combination with a door, of a frame, consisting of a rod bent to form approximately-paraliel arms pivoted at their inner ends to the door frame, the lower arm occupy,- ing a plane nearer to the outer face of the door when closed than the upper to receive the thrust of the door in its opening movement, said arms being connected at their outer ends by an upright portion and eye or loop, a link pivotally connected tothe door and to said eye or 100p, and a brush depending from 15' said pivoted frame,sub'stantia l1y as described; In testimony whereof I affix my signature in the presence of two witnesses.

WILLIAM THO. JOHNSON. Witnesses: V

D. N. MAXWELL, R. A. BREEZE. 

